Auxiliary clearance



W. C. BROWN.

AUXILIARY CLEARANCE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 24. 1918.

1,364,070. Patented Jan. 4,1921.

Cylinder Jcket UNITED STATES PAQTENI OF Fl CE.

WILLIAM CLINTON Brown, or SYRACUSE, Nnw Y'o'iix, assrenoa ro s'rumrr UNA- FLOW ENGINE. commnr, aconronarrofi or new YORK.

noxxnmax-l onmaiicn.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM CLINTON BROWN, a citizen'of theUnited States, residing at Syracuse in the county of Onondaga, State of New York, have invented new anduiseful Improvements in Auxiliary Clearance, of which the following is a speci fic-ation.

The invention relates to improvements in auxiliary clearance. The object is to provide automatic means for relieving excessive pressures in the cylinder and arbitrarily operated means for establishing communication between the cylinder and a closed or limited auxiliary clearance space.

A una-fiow ,engine whenoperating condensing requires a smaller clearance than when running non-condensing, so that if an engine is to be constructed to operate both condensing and non-condensing it is customary to provide an auxiliary clearance pocket with a valve in the passage from the cylinder to this pocket, which is closed when the engine is running condensing and open when running non-condensing.

In case the vacuum suddenly breaks when the engine is "running condensing, it is de "sirable that fthis valve shall open in order ance space and a suitable embodiment to reven t too reat. a ressure inside the P z: p

cylinder. If this valve is made in the form of .a safety valve open-ing'into the pocket it will relieve the pressure at the end of the first stroke, but ifthe-engine. continues.

running the valve, acting like a check valve, will gradually build up the pressure in the pocket so that finally it will give no relief and there will be the dangerous compression in the cylinder.

The drawing is a horizontal section of the end of a cylinder showing the clear;

0 my valve control therefor.

The end of the power cylinder 1 is provided with a port Qadaptedto communicate with. the auxiliary clearance space 3.

This port 2 is provided with a valve seat 4 adapted to be controlled by a valve 5 normally held against the seat 4-by the action of the spring 6. The tension of the spring is adjustable by means of the set-screw 7 A. passage or port 8 is provided leading from the clearance space 3 to any suitable exit such as drain 9. This passage or port 8 is provided with a valve seat 10 adapted to be controlled by the upper side of the Speciflcatioiio'f Letters Patent.

clearance from the drain.

Patented Jan. 4, 1921.

Application nie'tiflua 24, 1918. Serial. No. 236,268. I

valve 5. The valve 5 is adapted to be manually. operated by means ofthe hand operated member 11 threaded into the housmg 12.

In operation i It will be noted that the passage or port 2 is normally maintained closed by the valve '5,;held 1n such closed position by the pressure of spring 6, so that in case the pressure rises above the safe point in the cylinder, this valve will open and permit the steam to pass into the auxiliary clearance space 3, and'from the auxiliarv clearance space 3 out through port 8 to drain 9, so that it is impossible to build up the pressure by contlnuous operation.

If this drain remain open and the valve 5 were opened by turning back the hand member 10, in order to permit the engine to run non-condensing there would be a leak right out through the cylinder which would not permit of a continuous operation, so that valve 5 is arranged to close ofi' the port 8 to the drain, when it is operated by hand, by backing it up against the upper seat 10. It

will thus be seen that when the valve is 1 moved down against the bottom seat it shuts off the auxiliary clearance from the cylinder and opens the auxiliary clearance to the drain. When moved back against the upperseatfit opens the auxiliary clearance to the cylinder and shuts off the auxiliary 7 When moved down against the lower seat it acts as a safety valve to prevent any undue rise of pressure in the cylinder in case of loss of vacuum. There are very few cases if. any,

- where it is desirable to chan e an engine from condensing to non-con ensing auto- .matically, excepting due to an accident to the condenser, and in that case it is not asking too much of the attend-ant to go to his engine and back off this valve. In the mean time the safety device prevents an excess of pressure in the cylinder.

What I claim is lpThe combination with a steam cylinder of means forming an auxiliary clearance chamber with a port provided with a valve seat located between the cylinder and the clearance chamber and a relief port provided with a valve seat in said clearance chamber, a valve adapted to cooperate with either valve seat, resilient means operating on said valve for normally maintaining the tion with respect to the hand operated member re'lativelvmova 1e with res ect to the valve seats, and'a valve spindle aving a limited spring controlled jn i'ovable"rela-' means. a

2. The combination with a steam cylinder, of means forming an auxiliary; clearance chamber with a port providednwith avalve seat between the cylinder afidsaid'clearane chamber and a relief port provided witha valve seat in saidzclarance chamber, adapted to cooperate with either valve seat} a valve?" resihent; means' operatmg on ,sa {val cylinderand said'ifiqleaifance chamber elosed, responslveto exqess v'e' pressures in the cy1 1n"- der acting directly n'th'e valve toopen said sive pressure and hand oper'atdfmeans for ngrgial lyfn'aintaining thport-"be tvveen the 1 ing a hand operate me1'nber relatively movg v spmdle; havlng a' hmited'movable relation ablewith respeetto the valve seats,

withre'sp'ectto the hand operated means, a

, spring eoiinec'ted with said member and acting on thespindle, the spindle providedgwith an ab'iitinentffor engaging the wall of said member for limiting-its spring actuated movementf" I WM. CLINTON BROWN. 

